Liberals' missed opportunity

Either there wasn’t a budget crisis or the government is yet to find a solution.

After five months at the crash repair shop, the budget that emerged is little different to the previous model.

If anything it’s worse.

Selling public monopolies

The campaign to sell public assets continues, in Tasmania's case the electricity assets, maybe MAIB , the water assets although they're owned by Councils, and who knows what else.

 

The Age’s Michael West wrote a crackerjack article at the weekend re the NSW government’s plan to tender out operations of Manly ferries to a monopoly provider.

Triabunna: Cognitive capture:and the failure of public policy

 

Submission to Inquiry into the Triabunna woodchip mill

 

The committee is to be commended for delving into this period of public policy.

If lessons can be learnt and processes, checks and balances established we may be able to avoid a repetition of the disastrous lost decade for Tasmania.

More than any other event the hurried sale of the Triabunna mill suggests the insolvency of the previous owner at that time, yet public policy makers and their masters, the willing or unwilling victims of cognitive capture turned a blind eye to the obvious and further delayed the inevitable.

The relentless pursuit of a policy objective come hell or high water has proved to be an extremely risky strategy not only for the beleaguered residents of Triabunna but for all Tasmanians.